IRISH ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION

This Order brings into operation the Waste Management Act, 1996 (No. 10 of 1996), except sections 6 (2), 32 (2), 57 and 58, on the 1st of July, 1996.

These regulations set out the procedures for public access to information relating to the environment held by public authorities in accordance with the provisions of Council Directive of June, 1990, No. 90/313/EEC (O.J. No. L158/56 of 23 June, 1990) on the Freedom of Access to Information on the Environment. The Regulations also provide certain grounds for refusal of information and establish other procedures relevant to processing of requests by public authorities.

These Regulations amend provisions of the Local Government (Water Pollution) Regulations, 1978 ( S.I. No. 108 of 1978 ), concerning the application of the standard two month period allowed for the determination of license applications for effluent discharges to sewers in circumstances where discharges are made to combined drains declared to be sewers for the purposes of the Local Government (Water Pollution) Acts 1977 and 1992. The Regulations also amend provisions of the Local Government (Water Pollution) Regulations, 1992 ( S.I. No. 271 of 1992 ), on the control of discharges to aquifers in situations where harmful substances are present in discharges, materials being disposed, etc. in such small quantities as to pose no risk to the quality of groundwaters.

The Environmental Protection Agency (Extension of Powers) Order, 1996 which comes into effect on 27 May, 1996 provides for the following:

The application of specified sections of the Local Government (Water Pollution) Acts, 1977 and 1990 and of the Air Pollution Act, 1987  to the Agency

Any function of local or sanitary authority or anything which is required to be done in relation to a local or sanitary authority, under any of the specified sections, shall be exercised by, or done to, the Agency in lieu of the local or sanitary authority

A general prohibition on local authorities or sanitary authorities from exercising any of the above functions in relation to activities licensed by the Agency

The notification of accidental discharges or emissions, spillages or other "incidents" to the Agency, in addition to the local or sanitary authority

The amendment, where necessary, of the specified sections of the Water Pollution Acts and the Air Pollution Act as set out in the First and Second Schedules

The powers being extended to the Agency include

application to the High Court for an Order requiring the prohibition, termination or reduction of a discharge or emission, and in the event of non-compliance, the Agency may undertake the act ions specified in the Court Order and recover its costs from the offender

the service of notices specifying the measures, and the periods within which they shall be undertaken, necessary to prevent air or water pollution

prosecution of offences under general prohibitions on air and water pollution i.e. from emissions or circumstances not dealt with in the integrated licence

entry, inspection, monitoring, the gathering of information and prosecutions for the purposes of the proposed extended powers

the recovery of the Agency’s costs of taking proceedings and the payment of fines to the Agency in certain circumstances

These Regulations amend the European Communities (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations, 1989 ( S.I. No. 349 of 1989 ) by reducing the threshold at which afforestation requires Environmental Impact Assessment from 200 hectares to 70 hectares. A corresponding change has been made in the Local Government (Planning and Development) Regulations, 1996 ( S.I. No. 100 of 1996 ) in relation to the threshold at which afforestation requires planning permission.

These Regulations amend the Environmental Protection Agency (Licensing) Regulations, 1994, ( S.I. No. 85 of 1994 ), as previously amended by the Environmental Protection Agency (Licensing) (Amendment) Regulations, 1995, ( S.I. No. 59 of 1995 ), for the purpose of prescribing the day on or after which specified classes of activity in the First Schedule to the Environmental Protection Agency Act, 1992 will require an integrated pollution control licence in accordance with section 82 (1) of the Act. The Regulations also specify the "relevant day" for the purposes of "established activity" in section 3 of the 1992 Act in respect of specified classes of activity in the First Schedule to the Act.

This Order, which should be read in conjunction with section 82 (3) of the 1992 Act, specifies dates on or after which the established activities concerned are required to have applied to the Environmental Protection Agency for an integrated pollution control licence

This Order brings into operation, with effect from the 3 September, 1996, paragraphs 6 and 9 of the First Schedule to the Environmental Protection Agency Act, 1992 (No. 7 of 1992).